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Nebuchadnezzar
Personal Information
Spouse(s)Daughter of the Median King
Rule
Reign605 BC–562 BC
ActivitiesConquest of Jerusalem, destruction of Solomon's Temple, deportation of Jews as captives, construction of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon


Nebuchadnezzar was the King of Babylon (r. 605–562 BC) known for conquering Jerusalem, destroying Solomon's Temple along with the city's houses and walls, and deporting the Jews to Babylon as captives.

Verses in the Qur'an state that the Bani Isra'il spread corruption twice and faced double retribution. Commentators generally identify Nebuchadnezzar as the agent of the first punishment. While some sources identify him as the avenger of the blood of Prophet Yahya (a), scholars have largely rejected these claims due to the chronological impossibility, noting that Yahya (a) lived centuries after Nebuchadnezzar. Others interpret "Nebuchadnezzar" in these contexts as a generic title for those who destroyed the Jews.

King of Babylon

Nebuchadnezzar[1] served as the King of Babylon.[2] The name is of Babylonian origin, appearing in some sources as "Bukht-un-Naṣṣar" and in Hebrew as "Nebuchadnezzar".[3] His precise date of birth remains unknown.[4] Nevertheless, the Persian Encyclopedia, citing Jewish sources, alleges that Nebuchadnezzar was the offspring of Prophet Solomon (a) and the Queen of Sheba.[5] The commentary Jala' al-Adhhan wa Jala' al-Ahzan posits that *Bukht* signifies "son" or "servant" in Hebrew, while *Naṣṣar* was the name of an idol; he was purportedly named so because he was found as an infant near an idol with no known father, and was thus attributed to it.[6]

As the second Chaldean monarch, Nebuchadnezzar ruled Babylon[7] from 605 to 562 BC.[8] He married the daughter of the Median king around 612 BC.[9] The "Hanging Gardens of Babylon," regarded as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World,[10] were constructed under his orders.[11]

Nebuchadnezzar and the Punishment of Bani Isra'il

The Qur'an does not explicitly name Nebuchadnezzar.[12] However, certain verses recount that the Bani Isra'il caused corruption on earth twice and sought great superiority.[13][14] Consequently, they faced retribution twice, with servants possessed of "great might" sent against them.[15] Certain commentators hold that the first punishment[16] was executed by Nebuchadnezzar.[17] The Hebrew Bible attributes Nebuchadnezzar's attack and the destruction of Jerusalem and Solomon's Temple to the sins of the Bani Isra'il.[18]

In the Qur'an, the terms *ba'athnā* ("We sent") and *'ibādan* ("servants") denote the agents of this punishment.[19] Exegetes clarify that this terminology does not imply righteousness, as God may employ even oppressors as instruments of chastisement.[20] 'Allama Tabataba'i interprets the phrase *ulī ba'sin shadīd* (possessors of great might)[21] as a reference to their military prowess rather than their virtue.[22]

Attack on Jerusalem and Destruction of Solomon's Temple

Nebuchadnezzar launched three campaigns against Jerusalem, conquering the city and installing a vassal king each time; invariably, however, the king would eventually rebel.[23] Ultimately, Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem for the third time in 587[24] or 586 BC,[25] razing the city walls and extinguishing the kingdom.[26] He captured the King of the Jews, slaughtered his sons before his eyes, blinded him, and transported him to Babylon in chains.[27]

He set fire to Solomon's Temple and numerous homes in Jerusalem,[28] massacred a large portion of the population, and deported many others to Babylon as captives.[29] Nebuchadnezzar features prominently in the Old Testament,[30] particularly regarding the destruction of Jerusalem and the captivity and forced exile of the Jews.[31] According to the Torah, the entire population of Jerusalem—from warriors to skilled craftsmen—was exiled to Babylon, leaving only the destitute behind.[32]

Nebuchadnezzar and Avenging Prophet Yahya's Blood

Some traditions attribute Nebuchadnezzar's invasion of Jerusalem to divine vengeance for the blood of Prophet Yahya (a).[33] Certain sources confirm this narrative,[34] adding that Christians assisted Nebuchadnezzar against the Jews.[35] However, given that Prophet Yahya was a contemporary of Prophet Jesus (a)[36]—living centuries after Nebuchadnezzar—many scholars have rejected these traditions as ahistorical.[37] Some researchers propose that these reports actually refer to the second destruction of Solomon's Temple by the Romans in 70 AD, with "Nebuchadnezzar" serving as a symbolic archetype for the enemies of the Jews in the relevant literature.[38]

Notes

  1. ↑ Dehkhodā, entry "Bukhtanaṣṣar", Vajehyab.
  2. ↑ Rabīʿī, "Bukhtanaṣṣar", vol. 2, p. 398.
  3. ↑ Rabīʿī, "Bukhtanaṣṣar", vol. 2, p. 398.
  4. ↑ Rabīʿī, "Bukhtanaṣṣar", vol. 2, p. 398.
  5. ↑ Muṣāḥib et al., "Bilqīs", p. 527.
  6. ↑ Jurjānī, Tafsīr Jalāʾ al-Adhhān wa Jalāʾ al-Aḥzān, 1337 SH, vol. 5, p. 253.
  7. ↑ Zarrīnkūb, "Bukhtanaṣṣar", vol. 11, p. 480.
  8. ↑ Rabīʿī, "Bukhtanaṣṣar", vol. 2, p. 398.
  9. ↑ Dehkhodā, entry "Bukhtanaṣṣar", Vajehyab.
  10. ↑ "Seven Wonders of the World", IRIB News.
  11. ↑ Zarrīnkūb, "Bukhtanaṣṣar", vol. 11, p. 481.
  12. ↑ Rabīʿī, "Bukhtanaṣṣar", vol. 2, p. 399.
  13. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i namūna, 1374 SH, vol. 12, p. 27.
  14. ↑ Qur'an 17:4.
  15. ↑ Qur'an 17:5.
  16. ↑ Farrāʾ, Maʿānī l-Qurʾān, Egypt, vol. 2, p. 116.
  17. ↑ Mudarrisī, Min hudā l-Qurʾān, 1419 AH, vol. 6, p. 201.
  18. ↑ 2 Kings 24:3-4.
  19. ↑ Qur'an 17:5.
  20. ↑ Mudarrisī, Min hudā l-Qurʾān, 1419 AH, vol. 6, p. 201.
  21. ↑ Qur'an 17:5.
  22. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1417 AH, vol. 13, pp. 30-40.
  23. ↑ Zarrīnkūb, "Bukhtanaṣṣar", vol. 11, p. 480.
  24. ↑ Tawfīqī, Āshnāʾī bā adyān-i buzurg, 1389 SH, p. 96.
  25. ↑ Zarrīnkūb, "Bukhtanaṣṣar", vol. 11, p. 480.
  26. ↑ Zarrīnkūb, "Bukhtanaṣṣar", vol. 11, p. 480.
  27. ↑ Rahl, Az ʿAdn tā tabʿīd, 1396 SH, p. 520.
  28. ↑ 2 Kings 25:8-9.
  29. ↑ Tawfīqī, Āshnāʾī bā adyān-i buzurg, 1389 SH, p. 96.
  30. ↑ Zarrīnkūb, "Bukhtanaṣṣar", vol. 11, p. 480.
  31. ↑ See 2 Kings.
  32. ↑ 2 Kings 24:13-14.
  33. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṣadūq, Kamāl al-dīn wa tamām al-niʿma, 1395 AH, vol. 1, pp. 225-226.
  34. ↑ Jurjānī, Tafsīr Jalāʾ al-Adhhān wa Jalāʾ al-Aḥzān, 1337 SH, vol. 5, p. 253; Tārīkh-i Sīstān, 1366 SH, p. 35.
  35. ↑ Fakhr al-Rāzī, Mafātīḥ al-ghayb, 1420 AH, vol. 4, p. 10.
  36. ↑ Fakhr al-Rāzī, Mafātīḥ al-ghayb, 1420 AH, vol. 4, p. 10.
  37. ↑ Fakhr al-Rāzī, Mafātīḥ al-ghayb, 1420 AH, vol. 4, p. 10.
  38. ↑ "Nebuchadnezzar lived centuries before Prophet Yahya; how then is he called his avenger?", IslamQuest.

References

  • Tārīkh-i Sīstān. Edited by Malik al-Shuʿarā Bahār. Tehran: Kalāla-yi Khāwar, 1366 SH.
  • Tawfīqī, Ḥusayn. Āshnāʾī bā adyān-i buzurg. Tehran: SAMT, 1389 SH.
  • Jurjānī, Ḥusayn b. Ḥasan. Tafsīr Jalāʾ al-Adhhān wa Jalāʾ al-Aḥzān. n.p.: n.d., 1337 SH.
  • Dehkhodā, ʿAlī-Akbar. Entry "Bukhtanaṣṣar". Vajehyab.
  • Rabīʿī, Manīzhih. "Bukhtanaṣṣar". In Dānishnāma-yi jahān-i islām. Edited by Ghulam-Ali Haddad-Adel. Tehran: Islamic Encyclopedia Foundation, 1386 SH.
  • Zarrīnkūb, Rūzbih. "Bukhtanaṣṣar". In Dāʾirat al-Maʿārif-i buzurg-i islāmī. Edited by Kazem Mousavi-Bojnourdi. Tehran: Center for the Great Islamic Encyclopedia, 1381 SH.
  • al-Shaykh al-Ṣadūq, Muḥammad b. ʿAlī. Kamāl al-dīn wa tamām al-niʿma. Edited by Ali-Akbar Ghaffari. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyya, 1395 AH.
  • Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Sayyid Muḥammad Ḥusayn. al-Mīzān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān. Qom: Islamic Publications Office, 1417 AH.
  • Ṭabarī, Muḥammad b. Jarīr. Tārīkh al-umam wa-l-mulūk. Edited by Muhammad Abu l-Fadl Ibrahim. Beirut: Dār al-Turāth, 1387 AH.
  • "Seven Wonders of the World". IRIB News Agency. Accessed July 4, 2021.
  • Fakhr al-Rāzī, Muḥammad b. ʿUmar. Mafātīḥ al-ghayb. Beirut: Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, 1420 AH.
  • Farrāʾ, Yaḥyā b. Ziyād. Maʿānī l-Qurʾān. Edited by Ahmad Yusuf Najati et al. Egypt: Dār al-Miṣriyya, n.d.
  • Mudarrisī, Sayyid Muḥammad Taqī. Min hudā l-Qurʾān. Tehran: Dār Muḥibbī l-Ḥusayn, 1419 AH.
  • Muṣāḥib, Ghulām Ḥusayn et al. "Bilqīs". In Dāʾirat al-Maʿārif-i fārsī. Vol 1. Tehran: Amīr Kabīr, 1381 SH.
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  • "Nebuchadnezzar (Bukhtanaṣṣar) lived centuries before Prophet Yahya..." IslamQuest. Accessed July 4, 2021.

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